Small St. Espresso, Bristol

We visited the lovely city of Bristol in search of a triumvirate of speciality coffee shops recommended by readers (and the small matter of a wedding). Small St. Espresso was first on the list.

Small St. is owned by baristas Chris Chubb (present during our visit) and John Drysdale. It opened around 18 months ago.

Our eyes were drawn immediately to the gorgeous baby-blue La Marzocco coffee machine with matching cups (more often, La Marzoccos are a deep metallic red). I told Chris it was beautiful, and congratulated him on finding coordinating cups. To our surprise, Chris said that the cups came first; they then took the machine apart and had it sprayed to match.

The coffee comes from local Clifton Coffee. They have rotating guest beans, for example from Square Mile, Nude and Caravan. My flat white was a picture of perfection and tasted fantastic.

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3 Comments

Another of my all-time favourites. As well as great coffee, there’s a wonderful vibe in there. Like you, I was struck by the La Marzocco. What a wonderful colour! I also like the clever use of space. The window benches are fabulous, for example.

Of course, I’m now wondering where Coffee Shop #3 is. I know where I would have gone… Let’s see if that’s where you went too!

Good coffee can be hard to find and certainly not in the ubiquitous coffee chains that now infest every high street. Until recently the best coffee I had experienced was in Stockholm and in Taipei. Taipei has the wonderful Wilbecks and Cama coffeehouses. Bristol now has a few really good coffee shops and this is one of them set in the heart of the old city. Really well made latte and a good friendly atmosphere. We will be back.

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Cosy Coffee Shops is a guide to independent, speciality coffee shops in the UK. Since 2006 we've been helping you find coffee shops with charm, style, atmosphere and, of course, amazing coffee.
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